Do You Think More Relationships Blossom At Work Because More Women Are In The Workplace?
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What's sad is women who want to go into nursing, teaching, etc. can't be considered "career focused". Why can't we all learn to respect other peoples jobs.
Who is saying they can’t be? All I was pointing out was that 50 years ago, the options for women in nursing, teaching, etc were often limited because most higher level roles were taken by men (or in the case of nursing were held by nuns). There were separate “pink collar” and “white collar” professions and it was hard for women to jump from pink collar to white collar jobs.
That isn’t the case at all today. Nurses hold administrative positions in hospitals, get advanced certifications as nurse practitioners, midwives, or anesthetists, or can do a variety of other positions. Teachers can also go on to become school principals, superintendents, start their own charter/private schools, work at the university level, do corporate training, etc.
I keep reading threads about how people treat work as if it's high school now, and how work place relationships are bad and how it "didn't happen back in the day" and it literally occurred to me that workplaces are just more 50/50 these days than they used to be.
When I first started working, there were a few women (in lower positions) and mostly men (in the more senior positions). Many women worked in "womencentric" careers such as nursing or teaching, but it's a different world these days and if you work with 100 people, and many are single, then of course, it's a natural place to find someone that you're attracted/connected to.
Thoughts?
Remember, you are reading threads created by people who have some axe to grind, some complaint, some strong opinion about the topic, or some problem they expect complete strangers who don't have all the facts to solve for them. People rarely start threads because everything's great. CD and forums like it are microcosms. You are hearing from a minority compared to the population of working people as a whole. Just like trying to gain perspective about a product from "customer reviews"...the people who submit them tend to love the thing or hate it. The middle ground is the silent vaguely contented majority.
FWIW, I don't think the change in gender proportions in the workplace has anything to do with relationships there. I've spent the last 34 years in a technical professional field that used to be dominated by men but now isn't. I haven't seen any huge change in the number of coworkers who ended up in relationships. It was very few before and still is. Pursuing workplace relationships is still viewed as a not-so-great idea that could get very awkward if things go sideways.
This was just an impression from one single working person. Which means it is worth exactly what you paid to read it; absolutely nothing.
Last edited by Parnassia; 01-23-2020 at 03:25 PM..
I think it's just because that's where people spend the bulk of their time with other people. It's a good way to get to know someone. It just makes sense.
Unlesd it was between a supervisor and their employees, no company has never had policy against it. If I'm wrong, name me an industry that has this so called rule?
My experience stems from higher ed and nonprofit work, but anecdotally I have two friends who met their partners at work (different, unrelated teams) who had to keep their relationship secret because of the rules at their tech companies.
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It is more accepted now and I can understand it because people are working longer hours with little outside time for social activity. Me personally, there is no way in HELL I’d entertain even the possibility. I’ve gotten too close to my coworkers before platonically and gotten burned for it. Never again will I get anywhere near that close.
It's more common place because people are becoming more anti-social in terms of going out and meeting new people. Dating apps, longer hours at the job, etc.
It is probably just convenient to date someone at work or have an affair with someone at work.
Yep. Makes sense in theory. I'm scared to even go there. Of course, there are no single women in my office, so mute point. I would only do that at maybe a part time side job I didn't mind losing.
Society is so anti-social. Getting anyone to get together is damn near impossible. I've given up.
Some people can compartmentalize. They are cordial with fellow employees but They go to work for a purpose and they don’t seek personal fulfillment.
I wish my co-workers well but outside of the 9-5 M/F I’m not thinking of them...I’m thinking of my family...relaxing...my hobbies...my activities for the weekend...my next trip...etc.
I see the complete opposite: it seems much less acceptable to date in the workplace now than 20 or 30 years ago. I can't imagine doing it. Not only is it just a really bad idea due to proximity and professionalism, but it's also been explicitly against company policy everywhere I've worked unless you were already in the relationship when you began working. I couldn't even date someone who works in a different building and whose job never intersects with mine.
I just looked to see if anyone did a survey and I found this;
Quote:
Is the current climate around sexual harassment driving down the number of workers dating coworkers? Maybe. According to CareerBuilder's Annual Valentine's Day survey conducted by The Harris Poll, office romance is at a 10-year low, with 36 percent of workers reporting dating a co-worker, down from 41 percent last year and 40 percent in 2008.
Work relationships have always been a thing. People just weren't as open about it.
Anytime men and women are around each other, it's happening.
Exactly. I was at one company where there was a policy against co-workers dating. But after a month it dawned on me there were quite a few co-workers dating. Most did not work out, and the sexual tension (jealousy, gossip, etc) was always high. Only a few made it through the scrutiny (albeit for that time frame I knew them).
I understand the temptation. There is high proximity and understanding based on work goals, assignments, company structure, etc. The co-workers also have similar levels of education in a wide variety of fields - hence the attraction is high. But to me, it's like walking blindfolded in a hurricane and hoping I don't run into debris. I prefer dating at the gym or meeting women on the hiking/running trails. It's best to avoid the drama which can get out-of-control.
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